Hong-Chih Kuo’s run with the Seattle Mariners didn’t last long — six weeks after signing the Taiwanese reliever to a one year-contract, the M’s have reversed course and released him.

The Mariners have released left-handed reliever Hong-Chih Kuo. The 40-man roster is now at 39 players.

—
Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) March 19, 2012

Kuo was expected to form a formidable 1-2 setup punch with George Sherrill, paving the way for closer Brandon League. Instead the 30-year-old lefty finds himself unemployed with two weeks to go until the regular season.

Kuo had a difficult season for the Dodgers last year, missing part of the season with an anxiety disorder and then undergoing the fifth elbow surgery of his career in October. He finished with an ERA of 9.00 — 27 earned runs allowed in 27 innings of work.

Kuo was one of the most dominant middle relievers in baseball between 2008 and ’10, putting up ERAs of 2.14, 3.00 and 1.20 for the Los Angeles Dodgers during those three seasons. He was a National League All-Star in 2010.

The Seattle Mariners have signed former Dodgers pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo to a one-year deal, according to ESPN.com.

Kuo had been pitching for the Dodgers organization since 1999. He was made a free-agent after the Dodgers non-tendered him last December.

Despite being on the disabled list with elbow and back injuries as well as anxiety over the last two seasons, Kuo had passed his physical for this coming season.

During his seven-year MLB career with the Dodgers, Kuo is 13-7 with 3.73 career ERA in 293 1/3 innings pitched.